Blog — Page 220 of 275

Vin Diemen “Best of Tassie”

National Art School, Cell Block Theatre

Sydney, AU

August 12, 2017

I sure hope that my recent features on Tasmania and MONA have tickled your interest in one of Australia’s most underrated territories, its wine, outstanding produce and boutique beverages.

If you have not yet planned your trip to Launceston for the 2018 incarnation of MONA FOMA, let me bring a little taste of Tasmania to you. 

Now in its third year, the two-day series “Best of Tassie” in Sydney and Melbourne showcased the unparalleled quality of Tasmania’s food and wine industry with an extended line-up of the island’s leading vintners and providores.

The grapes wines from Tasmania are made from are of a certain elegance and not dissimilar to those informing the renowned European wines, for which the local climate is particularly conducive and suitable to elicit the intense flavours particularly of such wines as Pinot Noir, sparkling wines, Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Gris.

It is not for nothing that Tassie is held in high esteem for being at the forefront of Australian wine production in terms of quality, specifically its sparkling wines and Pinot Noirs, which is being rewarded on international terrain with accolades.

Tasmania’s first experiment with grapevines resulted in a wine that was shown at a Paris exhibition in 1848.

However, after this early start, the island’s wine production all but disappeared until the 1950s.

The early migrants from Europe recognised the similarities in Tasmania of the soils and climate with the great grape growing regions of their homelands, and began to challenge and disprove the theory that Tasmania was too far south for grapes to ripen.

Today, Tasmania enjoys a global reputation as a leading producer of premium cool climate wines, winning high praise and accolades from wine judges and critics alike – and rightly so.

Dolerite-capped mountains provide the perfect sanctuary to protect Tasmania’s wine growing regions from the harsher elements.  The soil itself is informed by an unique composition of mud- and ancient sandstones and the sediments of local rivers, stream and rocks of volcanic origin.

The fact that Tassie’s climate is one rooted in a moderate maritime one and by prevailing westerly winds off the Southern Ocean adds to the region being not unlike European terrain when it comes to being almost devoid of big temperature fluctuations, ultimately providing the ideal circumstances for the development of varietal flavours, helping to maintain the wine’s freshness and acidity.

Vin Diemen’s 2017’s “Best of Tassie” extravaganza incarnated at the Cell Block Theatre of the National Art School in the heart of Sydney’s Darlinghurst district – an ideal location for the collective of winery representatives, farmers and makers, as it offered the perfects backdrop of festival-goers grazing on distinctly Tasmanian cheeses from Bruny Island Cheese Co.

Bruny Island Cheese Co. is an artisan cheese maker in southern Tasmania, founded by Nick Haddow and their cheeses are all made and matured using traditional techniques and are some of the finest artisan cheeses made in Australia.

The cheeses Bruny Island Cheese Co. makes are very much the product of Nick and head cheesemakers Halsey's travels and training throughout the great cheese producing regions of France, Italy, Spain and the UK.

While inspired by the artisan cheeses from their travels, they do not seek to copy them.

Instead, they make cheeses that are connected to their environment -cheeses with a distinctly Tasmanian character, which served as the foundation of this year’s master classes that offered deeper insights into Bruny Island Cheese Co.’s philosophy and its approach to cheese making, specifically with it comes to working with raw mild, along with recommendations of wine pairings.

More exotic flavours and spices were offered by Shima Wasabi

Specializing in one of the trickiest crops around, the semi-aquatic herb is grown in climate-controlled "cool houses".

Shima Wasabi has researched and perfected the art of growing authentic Japanese wasabi (Wasabia japonica) in Australia and are now the largest producer of fresh wasabi in the Southern Hemisphere. Devoid of colours and preservatives that most horseradish based “wasabi” pastes and powders contain to imitate the real deal, Shima Wasabi offered freshly squeezed wasabi, which was the ideal accompaniment to Huon Aquaculture’s delicious offerings of Tasmanian salmon.

Check out our recent feature “Always Going Upstream Against the Current,” which sheds light on Huon and its delicious ray-finned emissions.

Over hundred wines were on offer for sampling and our favourites included the following drops in the categories:

Sparkling

• Jansz Tasmania Vintage Cuvée 2011
• Moorilla Cloth Label Late Disgorged Sparkling 2006

Riesling

• Bay of Fires Riesling 2016
• Sharmans Riesling 2014

Pinot Gris / Grigio

• Josef Chromy Pinot Gris 2016

Whites

• Moorilla Muse Chardonnay 2015  
• Pipers Brook Chardonnay 2016

Rosé

• Delamere ‘Hurlo’s’ Rosé 2015

Pinot Noir

• Holm Oak “The Wizard” Pinot Noir 2015
• Sharmans Pinot Noir 2013 

Cabernet & Blends

• Moorilla Muse Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc 2014

Other Reds

• Beautiful Isle Syrah 2016 
• Moorilla Muse Syrah 2013 

Non-wine drinks were proffered courtesy of:

Hartshorn Distillery, a new micro distillery making boutique batches of Vodka and Gin from their own sheep whey.

The Tamar Valley-based producer of international award winning spirits, Strait Brands, with its interesting Tasmanian Pepperberry Vodka.

The Abel Gin Co. with its excellent take on traditional gin,  turning it on its head with a blast of citrus over base notes of the Tasmanian wilderness, and Willie Smith’s Organic apple cider, whose range we have recently covered in a feature and who had a bottle of their fine Willie Smith’s Whisky Aged Cider on offer:

Following maturation times ranging from six to twelve months, individual barrels were selected and blended to achieve a complex, balanced cider that expresses both soft apple cider characteristics and persistent whisky and oak notes. Soft carbonation and no filtration results in a structured cider with textured mouthfeel and lingering warmth.

Another excellent collaboration with Tasmania’s Lark Distillery, which shall be the focus of an upcoming feature.

---

Photos by KAVV

Montaigne

Metro Theatre

Sydney, AU

August 12, 2017

Michel de Montaigne was one of the most significant philosophers on the French Renaissance known for popularizing the essay as a literary genre.

He is also know for posthumously inspiring Jessica Cerro, a Sydney-based singer-songwriter graced with a powerful vocals range to inhabit stages with her theatrical, comfortable and eccentric stage presence.

Tonight at the Metro Theatre was no exception:

She won the audience over – not that much resistance was to be overcome - by exuding her affable charm and by effortlessly swinging up and down the vocal scale and conveying a range of emotions from angst via dealing with day-to-day frustrations to more joyous heights – from exorcising meanderings through emotional wastelands of heartbreak to inspired odes to (self-) empowerment.

Backed by a full band, the performance was embedded in full and rich soundscapes that accentuated her elastic voice. 

While the performance at times seemed like a colourful patchwork of the different facets, comprised of left-of-centre melodies reminiscent of Sigur Ros and vocal operatics inspired by the likes of Regina Spektor and Florence Welch, that make up Montaigne’s personality and musical versatility, she has grown to refine the art of harnessing all individual parts to tell a coherent story of her own.

An artist that is enjoyable on every level – from music via vocal, the themes of her songs and the mélange of it all – and whose career has only just begun.

Michel de Montaigne might have preferred to quote other in order to better express himself – Montaigne’s strength is self-expression to an extent that will have others quoting her.

“…thus, let us drink beer!” – Belgium special

Waffles.

Friterie.

Chocolate.

A royal palace bigger than Buckingham palace.

The first country to legalise euthanasia and ban cluster bombs.

Three official languages.

Belgium.

One of the many good things coming out of the small European country is beer: 800 varieties are brewed in Belgium – not bad for a country with less than 11 million people.

Claiming that beer plays a prominent role in Belgian life is an understatement par excellence.

There is quite a variety of traditional beer style, some of which are unique to Belgium and each with its distinct, taste, smell and feel:

Trappist beers are one of the most famous types of Belgian beer as they are brewed in Trappist Monasteries, i.e. the name refers less to the style and more to the origin of the beer though, since for the beer to gain the Trappist certification, the brewery must be in a monastery, the monks must play a role in its production, and the profits from the sale of the beer must be used to support the monastery and / or social programs outside.

Drinking for a cause.

There were 7 certified Trappist breweries in 2011, six of which are in Belgium plus one in the Netherlands.

The beers are mostly top-fermented, but otherwise have very little in common stylistically.

Abbey beers are similar to Trappist beers, but do not meet all of the specifications required to receive the Trappist designation.

Abbey beer may be:

• produced by a non-Trappist monastery; or
• produced by a commercial brewery under commercial arrangement with an extant monastery; or
• branded with the name of a defunct or fictitious abbey by a commercial brewer; or
• given a vaguely monastic branding, without mentioning a specific monastery, by a commercial brewer, which is not really a criterion at all.

In other words, “Abbey” is a marketing ploy without further foundation or merit to it.

Amber Ales are similar to English pale ales, but are less bitterly hopped.

Blondes or Golden Ales are a light variation of pale ale, often made with pilsner malt.

Brown Ale is darker than amber ales, less sour than Flemish brown ale, and less strong than dubbel.

Champagne Beers are generally ales that are finished à la méthode originale for champagne.

Dubbel (double) are classic Abbey/Trappist types with a brown colour. Typically, a dubbel is between 6 and 8% ABV and is usually bottle conditioned.

Lambic Beers (Gueuze and Fruit Lambics) are a wheat beer variety brewed via spontaneous fermentation from exposure to wild yeasts and bacteria native to the Senne valley (Brussels area). These beers have a distinct flavour that is dry, vinous, and cidery, with a bit of a sour aftertaste. Lambics can be broken into the subclasses of Gueuze, Fruit Lambic, and Faro. These beers taste very different from how you would an expect a beer to taste. While an acquired taste, they can be delicious and are definitely worth trying if you visit Belgium.

Pils or Pale Lagers comprise the bulk of beer production and consumption in Belgium. These beers are not really distinctive and are what you are used to from mass produced beers all over the world.

Belgian Strong ales can vary from pale to dark brown in colour. They are usually medium to full-bodied and are high ABV. More often than not they are referred to as dubbels or tripels.

White or Wheat Beer is traditionally made with a mixture of wheat and barley, and often other additives, rather than just barley malt, hops, and yeast like regular beer. Before hops became widely available in Europe, beers were flavoured with a mixture of herbs called gruit, and then later in the Middle Ages, hops were added to the gruit. That mixture is still used today in most Belgian/Dutch white beers, usually with additives like orange peel and coriander. The production of this type of beer in Belgium had nearly ended by the late 1950s, and in the town of Hoegaarden, the last witbier brewery, Tomsin, closed its doors in 1955. Thankfully, in 1965, a milkman who used to help at the brewery revived the style and it can now be found all over the world. Their alcohol strength is about 5-6 percent ABV, and these beers can be quite refreshing, especially in hot weather. White beers also have a moderate light grain sweetness from the wheat used.

Many breweries produce special beers during December. Most contain more alcohol than the brewery’s other types of beer and may also contain spicing.

Let’s see what I found remarkable while sampling Belgian brews, shall we?

Bosteels Brewery

Brouwerij Bosteels (Bosteels Brewery) was founded in 1791 and is still owned and operated by the same family, now its seventh generation. They brew three beers:  DeuS, Karmeliet Tripel, and Pauwel Kwak.

DeuS Brut des Flandres

• Style: Champagne Style Golden Ale
• Alcohol Content: 11.5%ABV
• Country: Belgium

The elegant contours of the bottle hint at the delightful subtlety of DeuS. In its flute glass you will discover a light blonde to pale golden beer, brightly scintillating, saturated and with extremely tiny bubbles.

DeuS is crowned by a fine linen white, meringue-like head.

A fascinating complexity.

It develops the fragrance of fresh apples backed by mint, thyme, citrus, ginger, malt, pears, hops, allspice and cloves.

It glides over the tongue as smoothly as silk and then blossoms into a creamy, tingling sparkle. DeuS is light and vivacious and seduces you with the sweetness of a grape and the fruitiness of a desert apple. The finish is beautifully dry with a bare hint of tannin.

Karmeliet Tripel

• Style: Tripel
• Alcohol Content: 8.5%ABV
• Country: Belgium 

Tripel Karmeliet is a golden-to-bronze brew with a creamy head.

Its characteristics derive not only from the grains used but also from restrained hopping with Styrians and the fruity nature (banana and vanilla) of the house yeast.

Hints of vanilla mixed with citrus aromas.

Tripel Karmeliet has not only the lightness and freshness of wheat, but also the creaminess of oats together with a spicy lemony almost quinine dryness.

Kwak

• Style: Amber Ale
• Alcohol Content: 8.5% ABV

Kwak is recognisable by its deep bright amber colour and a dense, creamy coloured head.

You will smell a mellow, fruity and malty aroma with a slightly spicy character (coriander, hops).

Additional earthy and very subtle aromas of banana and perhaps also a whiff of pineapple or mango in the background.

Discover a very mellow, fruity attack, a nougat-like solidity, and a slightly spicy character with hints of liquorice passing into a warm finish that reminds you of caramelised banana. The bitterness always remains in the background but in the end emerges delicately.

Chimay

Chimay is an authentic Trappist beer. As explained above that means that it is brewed within the walls of a Trappist monastery under the control and responsibility of the community of monks, and whose revenue is devoted to social service.

The “Authentic Trappist Product” logo is granted by the International Trappist Association.

It guarantees the consumer the Trappist origin of the products according to the above mentioned well-established principles:

1. They are manufactured on-site or in close proximity to the monastery.
2. The monastic community is engaged in management and all aspects of the means necessary for their operation. This must clearly reflect both the unquestionably subordinate relationship with the beneficiary monastery and the relationship with the culture of the enterprise itself in the plan of monastic life.
3. The income provides for the major portion of the necessities of the community and for social services. 

Chimay Red

• Taste: Silky with a light bitter touch
• Type of foam: Firm and unctuous
• Alcohol content: 7% alcohol by volume
• Country: Belgium 

Tasting Notes: The Chimay Red Cap, or “Première”, in 750 ml bottles, is the oldest of the Chimays. It possesses a beautiful coppery colour that makes it particularly attractive.

Topped with a creamy head, it gives off a slight fruity apricot smell from the fermentation. The aroma felt in the mouth is a balance confirming the fruit nuances revealed to the sense of smell.

This traditional Belgian beer is best savoured at cellar temperature (10 – 12°C).

Chimay Triple

• Taste: Subtle combination of fresh hops and yeast that is improved by a bitter touch.
• Type of foam: Fine and snowy.
• Alcohol content: 8% ABV
• Country: Belgium 

The Chimay Triple, last-born of the Abbey, is labelled “Cinq Cents” on the 750 ml bottle.

Of a golden colour, the Trappist beer combines sweet and bitter in a rare balance. The beer’s aroma felt in the mouth comes from the hops’ perfumes with fruity touches of Muscat grapes and raisins, even ripe apples.

Duvel

• Style: Golden Ale
• Alcohol Content: 8.5% ABV
• Country: Belgium

Duvel is one of the first Belgian beers I indulged in and a long time favourite for special occasions.

Subtlely bitter.

Natural.

Silky.

Refined and distinctively hoppy due to ingredients from Slovenia and the Czech Republic.

Effervescent and an undeniably sweet aftertaste.

The extensive work that goes into the brewing process can be tasted.

A standout Belgian champagne beer.

There are specific Duvel glasses and a pouring method that should be adhered to in order to get the most out of the tasting experience.

Duvel Triple Hop

• Style: Golden Ale
• Alcohol Content: 9.5% ABV
• Country: Belgium 

A melange of two hops informs the flavours of this Duvel variation not unlike the basic one, but a third one is added to the mix, hence “triple”, duh, which results in its own unique aroma and taste nuances, backing the final alcohol content of 9.5%.

Liefmans’ beers are brewed craftsmanship, steeped in the rich tradition of Belgian beer culture.

Liefmans is made with a combination of light, dark and roasted malt. After fermenting for a week, the beer spends from between two months to a year maturing in cellars, depending on the type.

The typical bitterness, with sweet overtones, is created by blending mature beers with younger brews.

Mrs Rosa Merckx, the first and for many years the only female master brewer in Belgium, was at the helm for over 40 years and helped to perfect the unique flavour of Liefmans beers.

• Style: Aged Brown Ale
• Alcohol Content: 8% ABV
• Country: Belgium

Liefmans Goudenband is a mofo of a distinctive dark beer. Originally called IJzerenband (Iron Band) – a reference to the iron bands around the beer barrels – the bottle gained its champagne cork when it was renamed Liefmans Goudenband (Gold Band). Made in open vats with beer of mixed fermentation, it is left to mature for four to 12 months in the cellar. Mature beer is then fortified with younger beer, so the fermentation process starts up again.

Liefmans Goudenband is a beer for storing, and just keeps improving over the years not unlike a fine wine. Even after ten years, this dark red beer tastes as fresh as ever. You’ll immediately pick up on the aromas of caramel, apple, rhubarb, cherries and malt. On the taste buds you will find hints of apple and cherries, combined with woody notes, while the aftertaste hints at nuts and dried raisins. The mildly acidic taste make this beer an unusual match for blue cheese.

Kriek-Brut

• Alcohol Content: 6.0% ABV
• Country: Belgium

The Kriek-Brut beer represents the marriage between the fresh accents and slightly acidic flavour of black cherries. Liefmans Kriek-Brut is a mixed fermentation beer, with every hectoliter containing up to 13 kilos of fruit!

Liefmans Kriek-Brut is a blend of Oud Bruin and pale beer aged on cherries.

The beer is matured for 18 months, bringing out the very best of its intense flavour.

Liefmans Kriek-Brut is a deep reddish-brown colour, with a pale head and wood and almond notes.

On the palette, you can clearly taste the slightly sweet, yet at the same time gently bitter fruit flavours.

Jupiler

Now this is an interesting one.

Interesting in that Belgian beer mainliners look down on it as it is a “factory beer”.

Well, go to Williamsburg and read Vice while having a craft beer, pal.

My dad introduced me to it and I find it surprisingly drinkable.

Did you know that they have beer machines in Belgium? Yup. You think that used panty machines in Japan are useful? Maybe for the novelty factor.

At 2am when roaming Belgian cities, a couple of Euro coins meant that we were able to crack a cold Jupiler to fuel night of mischief. Thank beejeezus for Jupiler.

Maredsous

Blonde Ale

• Alcohol Content: 6.0% ABV
• Country: Belgium 

Fresh, with a harmoniously fruity aroma and a slightly bitter aftertaste. Still prized by the monks as a drink to accompany their lunch. This is a delectable Blonde ale with sprightly fruitiness, soft malting, and a slightly dry, gently-hopped finish. A sparkling nose, complex flavours, and a touch of bitterness give this fine ale all of the refreshing qualities of a classic Belgian Blonde.

Maredsous Brune

• Style: Brown Ale
• Alcohol Content: 8.0% ABV
• Country: Belgium 

Maredsous Brune was blended by Father Attout, whose aim was to brew an aromatic ale for Christmas. His creation, with a caramel bouquet, has become an indispensable fixture for beer lovers. This is a rich mahogany-brown Dubbel ale, with a delicate body, creamy head, and lush bouquet. Within its velvety taste you will discover subtle hints of dark fruit, chocolate, and toffee. You will also savour a dry and warming finish.

This ancient home of the Benedictine monks is also the birthplace of the renowned line of Maredsous Abbey ales.

Benedictine values are indisputably embodied in the authentic flavor and character of the Maredsous ales.

A substantial portion of the profits generated by Maredsous sales are donated to charitable causes.

Silly Brewery

Last century saw large farms in Hainaut brewing barley and hops.

Silly is a village lying in the Ath, Enghien and Soignies triangle and is crossed by the Sylle, the river from which the village takes its name.

Silly possesses a brewery that was founded in 1850 as Cense de la Tour, and that is today operated by the 5th generation.

From 1947 the Brewery became more prominent than the farm yet was still only producing top fermentation beer like Grisette, Saison and Scotch.

Several years later in 1950 when the Brewery already had a chain of bars, it began producing a bottom fermentation beer Pils as part of its product range.

1990 saw the creation of a white beer known as Blanche Titje.

This beer together with Saison de Silly, Double Enghien and Divine, have contributed to the growth of this independent and traditionally based family business.

Over recent years the Brewery has been enhancing its export business including Australia.

Silly Brewery has a range of beers under its umbrella, including some novelty ones but my favourite is the humble Silly Pils: A bottom fermented beer, pils type. 
 
First and foremost you notice the malt in this beer. This taste is followed by subtle impressions of hop bitters that do not overstay their welcome and never veer toward tartness. 
Summa summarum a pils beer with an amazing taste that makes for a splendid thirst-quencher.

 
Watch out for the second instalment of the “…thus, let us drink beer!” special.

---

Photos by T and Creative Commons

Always going upstream against the current – part 1

Pescatarians listen up.

Salmon.

How do I love thee?

I cannot possibly count the ways.

This series shall follow my travels to salmon relevant territories, shedding light on quality producers, restaurants and products.

Salmon. The common name for several species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae.

A temperate species.

Red to orange in colour, oily and praised for being a nutrional marvel for its high-quality protein, vitamins and omega-3 fatty acids.

Typically they are anadramous, i.e. they live in the sea and migrate into fresh water to spawn.

Folklore has it that the fish return to the exact spot where they were born to spawn.

A mechanism that has been attributed to their olfactory memory.

They evolved in the cool, high latitude waters of the North Atlantic, an environment which provides well defined seasons that drive life rhythm of the salmon.

Although far from the Atlantic Ocean – unspoilt and remote – the pristine waters of the Huon River, Hideaway Bay and the Southern Ocean in Tasmania Australia have proven to be a suitable location to raise healthy and flavoursome Atlantic salmon.

With water fed by tributaries that start in World Heritage Wilderness Areas, air that’s refreshed by the Roaring Forties, the strong westerly winds found in the Southern Hemisphere, and fertile soil that spawns flourishing apple orchards, Atlantic salmon thrive in the still unspoilt environs of Tasmania.

Tasmania is also free from a number of parasites and diseases that have affected some salmon colonies around the world.

Atlantic salmon was first introduced to Tasmania and New South Wales for sport fishing in the 1800s.

My recent trip to Tasmania led me to Huon Aquaculture, which was founded in 1987 and has grown to become one of thee most prominent salmon producers in the Southern Hemisphere.

The holding pens of Huon belong to  the largest in the world when it comes to salmon farming and they make a deliberate effort to move them to new locations on a regular basis to make sure that the surroundings are fresh and provide what their salmon stock needs, a process that is known amongst experts as “fallowing”.

The Huon Aquaculture Group produces over 17,000 tonne of fresh salmon per year and my favourites of their delicious range includes among:

• Huon Premium Smoked Salmon with the Atlantic Salmon slowly smoked for up to 40 hours over red-gum logs. Sliced vertically - perfect for immediate consumption.
• Huon Premium Hot Smoked Salmon: The Salmon fillets are dry salted and left to cure, then smoked with red-gum logs in kilns using traditional slow-smoking methods. The fillets are double-smoked which helps retain the natural oils of the salmon. They are boneless and ready to go.

My favourite emission out of the house of Huon is their whisky cured salmon, which celebrates the coming together of salmon with one of the world’s finest whiskys, Tasmania’s Lark Distillery, which runs an 1800 litre copper pot still along with a 500 litre spirit still. The range of distilled products includes the flagship Lark Single Malt Whisky and Forty Spotted Rare Tasmanian Gin.
Huon fine salmon is marinated with the award-winning Tasmanian Lark whisky for up to two days to produce a taste sensation for both salmon and whisky connoisseurs.

Heavenly.

The smoky notes of the barrel in the whisky marry with the subtle flavours of the delicate Huon salmon to produce a product that is without par when it comes to salmon creations.

Talking of cured salmon - the rich sweetness of their Reserve Selection Honey Cured salmon will get you as soon as you open the packaging.

Both delicate in texture and rich in sweet overtones, the salmon is drizzled in fine Australian honey and cured for up to 24 hours.

Once the honey has done its work the salmon is lightly smoked and carefully packed as a whole fillet by hand.

Mouth watering?

Trust me, it is a delectable experience indeed.

Watch out for the second instalment of Always going upstream against the current.

---

Photos from Huon Aquaculture website

Man cannot live by bread along – he must have peanut butter, or, as the wise philosopher Sylvester Gardenzio “Rimbaud” Stallone once proclaimed: “If you try to change the taste of peanut butter, you’re in trouble.”

Even the Methuselah of and elder of rock music, i.e. Iggy Pop, wondered after an incident at one of his incarnations, why anyone would not bring a jar of peanut butter to a concert.

Those quotes are of course out of context but I like the fact that people that emitted them.

I do have a not very subtle preference for peanut butter.

Fair dinkum.

Peanut butter – there is a growing number of variations and people tend to have strong opinions on it, myself not excluded.

For some it is a staple.

For others a treat.

Basically, peanut butter =  a derivation based on ground dry roasted peanuts.

So far, so good.

We all know the staples, i.e.  sandwiches (notably the peanut butter and jelly sandwich), but what is more interesting is that it is used in other variations, such as the excellent Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (made of chocolate-coated peanut butter), which are popular with Charles Milles Manson, candy bars (e.g., Snickers), which I have never been a big fan of,  and peanut-flavoured granola bars.

The two mainstream types you would be familiar with are crunchy (or “chunky” with ground peanut fragments thrown in the mix for good measure to add texture) and smooth.

The peanuts in smooth peanut butter are ground uniformly, creating a creamy texture.

So far for the theory and very basics.

Still with me, sisters and brethren?

Let me take you by your paw and guide you through some of my preferred Australian brands when it comes to the brown goodness:

Australia’s Mayver’s a small Australian family company, offers a range of different taste options based on home-grown Australian peanuts sourced from plantations around Kingaroy, Queensland and other locally sourced ingredients:

The basic one is Mayver’s new Pure-State Original Super Spread. A natural, solid sugar-free nut butter made from just Chia, Sesame, Almond and nuts that have simply been crushed, blended and bottled. No added oil, salt or sugar. It is deliciously crunchy and high in protein (20g per 100g) but filled with happy amino- and omega-3 acids.

My favourite Mayver’s variant is the dark roasted one as well as the Organic Crunchy variety with its bold, rich flavours and no other ingredients than Australian peanut and a pinch of sea-salt for a bit of zing, hence low in salt and saturated fat and high in niacin, the stuff that combats depression and age-related cognitive disease.

Good stuff.

Their Cacao Super Spread has absolutely no added sugar and is naturally sweetened with dates. Sounds good on paper yet I prefer the aforementioned basic flavours.

Enter Jackson 5’s “ABC” - Mayver’s Almond, Brazil & Cashew fits the acronym and makes for a nice change and a slight derivation from their peanut butter focus and hits the spot for me, as the nuts mélange adds a distinct flavour of its own.

There is something to be said for Australia’s polyunsaturated and resveratrol laden hi-oleic nuts with their vaguely metallic aftertaste, which do not seem to oxidize compared to other varieties and hence do not go rancid.

Freshly roasted and lovingly squashed in sunny Nelson, NZ, these nuts are what Pic’s is working with, with the only other ingredient being sea salt or alternative options without it.

Pic’s crunchy variety is a favourite of mine. It is not like other crunchies, which tend to be smooth peanut butter with lumps: Au contraire, it is a mouth filling textural adventure comprised of thousands of peanut pieces, from the size of the finest grains of sand to bits as big as a grain of rice.

It will give your tonsils a playful tickle on the way down.

That part about tickling sounds good, doesn’t it?

Trust me, it is.

To counter the misconception that there is “A” proper way of eating peanut butter, Pic’s has developed the world’s first Peanut Butter Slug. The Slug is pure peanut butter, ground smooth, lightly salted and squashed into a foil tube, containing 30g.

It is the thing to have on the go, all ready to eat, full of protein and free of gluten, dairy and sugar and just about everything except peanuts.

Ka-boom!

Robustly packaged in a sensuous peanut butter resistant foil tube, slugs fit snugly into the pocket of your spandex pants or your terribly oversized, saggy camouflage excuses for slacks.

Pic’s also offers Cold Pressed Extra Virgin Peanut Oil, also made of Kingaroy nuts, whose light nutty flavour of the peanut oil makes it great in salad dressings, dips and marinades giving food a clean flavour.

Another one of Pic's emissions is Cashew Butter.

The cashew is a peculiar nut. It grows wild in steamy tropical jungles, dangling from the bottom of a fruit, encased in a nasty toxic shell that is used for making drain cleaners and the like. It roasts and squashes relatively easily and produces a softly textured butter with a slightly sweet flavour. Category “yum +”.

We had a chance to catch up with Pic at the recent Taste of Sydney event, where his booth was one of our favourite exhibitors: 

The fact that everything from the labeling to the way the jars are created (including hidden messages) provide a source of both information and amusement does not hurt either. Attention to detail is the name of the game and one does not come too often across such a coherent product and brand.

Let’s head over to Santos Organics – an entity with an ethical mission and committed to a sustainable business practice:

Santos Organics is a local community owned enterprise with over ninety unit holders who share an interest in providing best quality organic, natural and GM-Free food with excellent, friendly customer service as well.

The Santos Organics’ Mission is to serve the community by:

• Providing the highest quality organic food and sustainable products and services
• Fostering ethical and healthy choices 
• Promoting awareness and conscious living 
• Investing in and encouraging actions that benefit our community and environment 
• From humble beginnings, starting off selling bulk foods in the back of a panel van, Santos has organically grown into being a landmark in the Byron Shire, in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, with shops in Byron Bay and Mullumbimby.

Over the last thirty years their focus has grown, in light of working towards an environmentally and ethically sustainable world, to ensure that all produce is organic and fair trade.

The name Santos comes from the Vedic word, Santosh, meaning “Life-force.” In Spanish the name Santos also means ‘Saint’. As this was hard to pronounce for some, the ‘h’ was dropped off, making the name Santos.

Got it?

Starting with such a noble vision in their original name, they produce some of the best and purest peanut butter available on terra australis:

Their Organic Peanut Butter is 100% peanuts.

Nothing added.

Howzzat?

It is made by Santos using a Durst Peanut Butter Mill.

Peanuts go in.

Crushing ensues.

They emerge ready to be spread on your bread of choice.

Taking purity to a new level.

Proteco Oils is an Australian company based in Kingaroy Queensland that are the leading specialist manufacturers of high quality cold pressed oils, using fresh Australian grown produce, who have been established for over 30 years.

Although Proteco's operations have been ongoing for several decades, the new processing plants has elevated Proteco's status to one of the most advanced specialty processors in the world.

Their advanced extraction and filtration technology provides cold pressed nutritional oils and they do not employ chemical or solvent extraction processes, ensuring the aroma, flavour and nutritional characteristics of their raw materials are preserved.

Their range of peanut butter products are pure and natural with no salt, sugar or added fat, made from freshly roasted Australian grown Kingaroy peanuts.

In terms of flavour variety, Proteco and its emissions take the cake.

While some variations might sound gimmicky, the flavours are well calibrated and unveil themselves in layers, making the consumption a sensual experience.

Sounds sexual? It borderline is.

Peep these variations:

Chocolate and sea salt

Honey, cinnamon and peanut butter

Smoky chilli and paprika peanut butter

Honey infused peanut butter

Not that their basic “Smooth and crunchy” flavour is nothing to write home about, but the above mentioned variations stopped me in my tracks.

They are well-measured treats built on layers of flavours that not only rely on the obvious ingredients, but interact with one another and thereby creating subtle nuances that make eating them a multisensory experience.

Trust me – you want to try it for yourself.

Stay tuned for the second installment of this series.